UNIFORM | Brook There

I've often been emailed and independently thought about the idea of a post on underwear for Tomboy Style, but never felt I'd found the right angle or label. Nothing had really caught my eye that both aesthetically and holistically felt right for this blog, until I found Portland, Maine-based Brook There. Designed, cut, and sewn in the state of Maine with a focus on organic and sustainable fabrics that are long lasting and comfortable, I quickly realized they were a company to take note of. It's a rare thing, at least I think it is, to find a women's lingerie label that creates pieces that are intelligent and undoubtedly sexy without being reductive, and Brook There is exactly that.
The duo behind the brand is husband and wife team Brook and Daniel Pepice, who you may know from the label and online store Seawall (one of my faves and more on that soon!), which they also design and run. What I really love most about Brook There though, which is already five collections deep, is the wide spectrum they produce; there are some super feminine pieces and some very boyish pieces, too. While I was about to say "something for everyone", I think it'd be more apt to say there's something for every mood. I think their quote says it all, "Comfort is primary—confidence comes from being comfortable in one's skin and one's clothing—and confidence is the underpinning of beauty in every form." So true.

9 comments:

PoppyK
said...

What's really nice it's their underwear is fairly reasonably priced. I get the BOUNCE catalog from Title 9 and as somewhat of a cheapskate, I gasp in horror that most of their bras are in the $70-$80 range. I can't realy see wearing Brook There's $32 underpants on a regular basis, but they do have a good selection of $52 bras and I could see ponying up $32 for a matching pair of underwear for when I want to be really pulled together or feel pretty.

These designs are beautiful but I'm always disappointed to see a lingerie line that only caters to women with an A or B cup. It seems as short sighted as a clothing line offering only sizes xs and s. I follow your blog because your esthetic speaks to me, but this post highlights a problem that curvy or busty tomboys often run into.

I would be thrilled to see bras designed for all cupsizes that were tasteful, minimal and also creative in design.

If you wear a high C or D cup your options are often limited to tacky, large scale designers whose products are made overseas in questionable conditions. The quality and materials of most of what is offered are also lacking.

I agree with what Jess said about the sizing - I would likely bust out of their largest size bra but I also understand that once you get to larger sizes - especially larger cup sizes - a little more engineering and trial and error has to go into the design of most bras and that's peobably something that would come with time from a start-up lingerie line.

Finding Tomboy style lingerie is on off the hardest things in the world. I kind of hate it, but I Recently bought a bra of La Fille d'O and it's the best I've ever had. Fits perfectly, really. Looks good. And although it's feminine, it's not too girly for me. Just stylish. (Some are a bit 'In your face', but even then...)

It's all made in Belgium. And as I've heard from girls with bigger sizes than me, these fit perfectly too.

I'm in love with the aesthetic of this company and their products. But like to many designs of it's kinda, I find the bras to be impractical. As they are soft cup, I feel that the wearer is susceptible to nipples poking through the bra and clothing. Maybe I'm a bad feminist of voicing this, but I don't feel comfortable when my nipples are visible to the general public, not do I like seeing other's. It would be nice if the bra had some reinforcement in the nipple area to prevent this.